Non-Capital Region Infection Reproduction Number 1.16 ... Ongoing Small-Scale Contact Infections

COVID-19 Cases Increase Across All Age Groups... Highest Among 20s

On the 13th, when 1,990 new COVID-19 cases were reported, marking the third consecutive day with around 2,000 cases, travelers visiting the temporary screening clinic set up at Anseong Rest Area on the Seoul-bound side in Gyeonggi Province are waiting to get tested. /Anseong=Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Amid the ongoing '4th wave' of COVID-19, the spread of infections has recently intensified even in non-metropolitan areas.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters on the 16th, an analysis of how many people one confirmed case infected during the week from the 8th to the 14th showed that the weekly infection reproduction number was 1.10.

The infection reproduction number had shown a slight decline after recording 1.09 in the third week of July (July 18?24), 1.04 in the fourth week, and 0.99 in the first week of August, but has now returned to an upward trend. A value above 1 indicates an expanding outbreak, while below 1 indicates containment.

By region, the non-metropolitan areas recorded 1.16, higher than the metropolitan area's 1.07. The Central Disease Control Headquarters explained, "In non-metropolitan areas, the average daily number of locally transmitted confirmed cases in the past week was 703.1, a 25.85% increase compared to 558.8 cases in the previous week. In the metropolitan area, after a period of stagnation, cases increased by 15% compared to the previous week, influenced by holidays and other factors."

As confirmed cases rapidly increase, severe cases and deaths are also occurring consecutively. The average number of critically ill patients was about 213 in the third week of July but increased weekly to 280, 347, and 377.

Weekly deaths were only 13 in the third week of July but rose to 32 in the most recent week, showing a clear upward trend. The Central Disease Control Headquarters also noted that critically ill patients are increasing particularly among those in their 40s and 50s.

The increase in confirmed cases is seen across all age groups. Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters and Director of the National Institute of Health, stated, "Incidence rates increased across all age groups compared to the previous week. In particular, the 20s age group maintains a high incidence rate of 6.1 cases per 100,000 population, and the 30s age group is at 4.3 cases per 100,000."

This wave is mainly spreading through small-scale infections. The proportion of cases presumed to be infected through personal contact?such as family, acquaintances, and coworkers?has consistently accounted for more than 40% of total confirmed cases, reaching 49.8% in the most recent week.

Infections linked to multi-use facilities such as restaurants, sports facilities, bathhouses, and pubs have also continued. Among the 102 newly reported cluster infections in the past week, 32 cases (31.4%) occurred in multi-use facilities, followed by workplaces (30 cases), family and acquaintance gatherings (20 cases), and educational facilities (9 cases).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.